The MASD problem
Moisture-Associated Skin Damage (MASD) is an umbrella term, which covers a range of types of skin damage caused by repeated or prolonged moisture on the skin.
Sadly, incidence rates of MASD are as high as 29% amongst longer stay (48 hours+)1 patients in areas like critical care, but there is also increased risk in any care setting where patients’ skin can be exposed to excess bodily fluid or moisture for prolonged periods. In acute settings this is areas like care of the elderly but also maternity and some longer procedures in the operating room, where the patient is at risk of skin breakdown due to exposure to excess fluid.
In community care settings, residents in nursing homes are also a particularly high-risk group with two thirds affected by both faecal and urinary incontinence².
So, what can we do?
Back in 2017, Julie Tyrer, Tissue Viability Nurse Consultant at Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital NHS FT, started developing a local quality improvement initiative called MINIMISE Moisture™.
The aim of this initiative was to increase awareness of MASD risk factors amongst healthcare professionals in the Trust, combined with the implementation of a new protocol to prevent and manage MASD in patients.
The results were impressive, with 96% of staff surveyed being better able to identify patients at risk.
This new level of understanding also contributed to a threefold reduction in MASD cases between April 2019 and February 2020.
Launch of MINIMISE Moisture initiative at Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital
MASD Awareness Day 2023
Following the success of the first ever MASD Awareness Day in 2022 it will now be an annual event, happening on the third Thursday in March each year. For 2023, this will be 16 March!
The guiding principle for the day is to get everyone to #ThinkMASD and have a plan to MINIMISE Moisture for those patients most at risk of developing MASD.
Get started with MASD Awareness Day 2023
To help you get started, we have worked with Julie to develop a MINIMISE Moisture digital campaign kit containing posters and an educational leaflet, for both staff and patients, that can be used all year round. You will also receive invitations to our series of free educational webinars on MASD prevention and management in the run up to MASD Awareness Day.
MASD Awareness Day 2023 registration
Complete the registration form below to receive your digital campaign pack and invitations to the webinars on MASD prevention and management.
MASD Awareness Day Webinar Series
Best Practice Recommendations: Prevention and Management of Moisture-Associated Skin Damage (MASD)
Jacqui Fletcher, OBE, Independent Wound Care Consultant
Date: 7 March 2023
Time: 12.00-13:00 (GMT)
Prevention and Management of Intertriginous Dermatitis (ID)
Professor David Voegeli, Professor of Nursing in the Faculty of Health & Wellbeing, University of Winchester
Date: 10 March 2023
Time: 12.00-13:00 (GMT)
How MINIMISE Moisture™ is Helping to Prevent and Manage MASD.
What Could You Do?
Julie Tyrer, TVN Consultant, Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital
Date: 14 March 2023
Time: 12.00-13:00 (GMT)
You can also order MINIMISE Moisture promotional merchandise here.
Let’s make sure we all have a plan to MINIMISE Moisture and stop our patients suffering the discomfort and indignity of MASD.
#thinkMASD #MINIMISEMoisture
Reference:
1. Valls-Matarín, et al. (2017). Incidence of moisture-associated skin damage in an intensive care unit, 28(1), 13–20
2. Medline MASD Survey October 2021
MINIMISE Moisture and the MINIMISE Moisture logo are trademarks of Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital NHS Foundation Trust in the UK.